# LUNA Pipes Review (several posts)



## Katharsis (Jun 15, 2011)

Part 1 - Review

I know there are some of us out there that have wanted a churchwarden in the Lord of the Rings style -- wood, long, curved, and generally very "raw" looking. I'm sure we in that group have all heard of MacQueen -- and of their mediocre and slow service. I have a MacQueen and also just got a LUNA pipe and figured it would help some here if I reviewed the LUNA (all caps because that's what the maker, Tom, does.)

On the site, under the “fantasy pipes” section, you get a choice of three: Gandalf (18”), Hobbit (14”), and Strider (10”). The color choices for any of these are: Rosewood (the darkest), Walnut (medium), Mahogany (lightest). (That’s not a typo – mahogany is the lightest stain; weird, I know.) You also get a choice of a white ash bowl, a maple bowl, or a briar bowl, with prices marginally increasing, respectively, and you can get the standard bowl (about 1.5” chamber depth) or a tall bowl (about 2” chamber depth). Prices are on the site of all these. The stem I believe is always maple. I purchased a 14” in rosewood with a briar bowl. I thought the 18” would be great, but it just sounded WAY too long to be comfortable to hold.

The purchasing is done via P a y p a l (for some reason this site edits out that word) by entering the amount yourself, which seemed a little weird and shady to me, but it all turned out good. When he got the payment that day, he said he’d get to work on it in a couple days. It only took about 7-9 days total since payment was sent that I received the pipe – MUCH better than MacQueen’s 2-3 months, or so I’ve heard. (I purchased my MacQueen from another source that already had one in stock.)

When I received it, the packaging was sufficient, and the pipe was protected. The first thing I noticed was the much better stain than the MacQueen. It had a slightly glossy look, but barely, and seemed more sealed that the MacQueen. The second thing I noticed is that the pipe is all one piece – you cannot detach the stem. This would be a problem, but he did provide a few very long pipe cleaners, as well as a thin metal, flexible rod that goes all the way down to really clean out any gunk that could accumulate. I e-mailed him yesterday to ask where he gets these enormously long pipe cleaners, and he sent me a link to a gun site. Apparently they are gas tube cleaners for an AR-15 rifle. Ha!

Smoking experience: The pipe comes with some sort of a pre-cake thing inside the bowl, like some manufacturers do. I had the same thing on the inside of my Tsuge when I got it. Neither are of a sticky substance though -- they seem more fine sandpaper-ish. This isn’t a problem for me. As for the breaking in of the pipe, I can definitely detect a little maple taste from the stem itself, but not from where my mouth is – it’s the smoke pulling it up. I’m sure this will pass in time. The bowl itself can get a little hot, but then, I *was* smoking my hotter burning stuff at the time. The letter he sends with the package says that if it gets that hot, rest it for a little bit. If you don’t want to, you could always hold it by the stem itself; it’s quite easy to hold despite its length, and I find it very comfortable. The weight of the pipe is also just right and more on the lighter side.

Overall, I really like this pipe, and it met my expectations and will possibly exceed them. Only two negative points come to mind: a non-detachable stem, and having to get more pipe cleaners from a gun site, which will be slightly more money than regular cleaners.


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## Katharsis (Jun 15, 2011)

Part 2 - The letter in the package

The package came with this letter:

The care and feeding of your LUNA pipe

Here are a few tips to help keep your LUNA pipe in top working order for years to come:

1: Store in a cool dry place such as over your fireplace mantle or coffee table for all to see. Never store it in your shower's soap dish and never use it as a door stop.

2: Never let the pipe get too hot. If the bowl is too hot to touch, it's time to put it down and let it cool for a while.

3: The tip of the stem will likely take the most abuse. If it becomes too wet, the grain will raise and it will need to be re-waxed. Never re-coat the stem with any oil-based finishing products. Natural Carnauba wax is best and any reputable tobacconist can buff on a new coat of wax for free.

4: Oversmoking - Smoking these pipes more than once a day can damage the stem. Please allow the pipe to dry out for a day between smokes to keep the stem from being saturated with tobacco juices.

5: To clean your Gandalf-length pipe with the optional cleaning kit [this comes with the Gandalf pipe upon purchase], simply squirt a small amount of alcohol down the stem with the supplied syringe and rod out the gunk with the supplied cleaning rod. Hold the pipe so the bowl is down over your back yard. Never try and clean your pipe over nice carpeting or fine antiques. If you own an air compressor a blast of 10 to 20 psi air is a good tool for cleaning the longer pipes.

For the Hobbit and Strider length pipes just dip the long pipe cleaner in alcohol and run it down the stem. For a free professional cleaning and buffing just return the pipe to the address below and include $6 for return postage in the U.S.

If you are not completely satisfied with your pipe you can return it (unsmoked) for a full refund.


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